Napa Valley Then and Now, by Kelli White

Written by sommelier Kelli Audrey White, this book serves as a
much-needed definitive guide to one of the world’s most celebrated wine
regions. Exhaustively researched and thoughtfully organized, Napa Valley, Then & Now chronicles
the rise of Napa’s wine industry from its earliest days to its current
glory, examining its triumphs and failures along the way. Critically, it
also checks in on the current state of many of Napa’s historic wines
and vintages, just as interest in this heretofore marginalized category
of wine is starting to grow.

For too long, California wines were
considered unworthy of great age. White seeks to dispel that notion, and
is uniquely qualified to do so, having spent the last several years
tasting through the cellars of countless vintners and private collectors
in Napa Valley and beyond. In these pages, she guides the consumer
through her findings, not only highlighting what to pursue and what to
avoid, but providing context for each wine so that it might be
understood as part of a larger historical narrative. In short, this is a
singular, exceptional work that is a great addition to the annals of
wine scholarship.